On Having Two Wings

I returned home from Ethiopia on Saturday, grateful for traveling mercies for our whole team, and for the opportunities to join God in His work!

Last week the DML Ethiopia leader, Yoseph (pictured between board member Letta Jean Taylor and I), relayed the following story in his talk on generosity:

A 74-year-old man went to the doctor as he was having difficulty breathing.  The doctor checked his lungs and told the man that he would need to go on oxygen.  As the medical system was one where you have to prepay for services, the doctor told him it would cost 5,000 birr (about $42) for one hour of oxygen.  The man began to cry.  Concerned, the doctor asked whether the man didn't have the money to pay for the oxygen?  The man replied, "No, it's not that.  It's just that I am realizing the gift of having breathed for free for 74 years!"

What a beautiful response by this man!  We too need to be reminded that not one of us have paid for our hands, for our feet, our ears, our eyes.  This, Yoseph said, is the beginning of understanding generosity.  When we know the gifts that we have been given, and why we have these gifts (blessed to be a blessing), we understand that a healthy person both gives and receives.  

It is like flying with two wings - one is for giving and one is for receiving.  You can't fly properly with just one wing - you will go in circles and crash.  Every organ of our bodies understands this.  It's impossible for you to say that you will receive oxygen and refuse to give carbon dioxide.  It is impossible to eat and not have bowel movements.  These are natural cycles! We need to understand this for ourselves and also for those around us.  

God is the author of generosity.  And Yoseph reminded our team that this is not a subject that we teach - it is a life that we are to live.  If we are not generous in small things, it will be difficult to be generous in big things.  

In DML, we ask every church to teach three things: a healthy theology of work, wealth creation God's way, and wealth management God's way.  Last week, in Wolaita, Ethiopia, we met with 50 pastors and church leaders (see picture).  This is an area that has 1,500 EKHC local churches (Ethiopian Kale Heywet Church), with more than one million members!  The leaders who gathered are just a few of those implementing a workplace discipleship ministry in their church. I was blessed to hear testimony after testimony as to what happens when these three things are taught.  Personal income growing, church income growing, more missionaries being sent out, more people being reached for Christ.  The church is teaching wealth creation and at the same time, teaching stewardship and generosity, so that the increase is not just going to help one family but to be a blessing to more and more.  

It's amazing what happens when every person understands that they are part of the priesthood of believers!  

I am so thankful for the Kale Heywet Church and the work that they are doing throughout their 11,000 churches and twelve million members to increase Christian influence in all of society!  And one of the strong members of the DML team, Yonatan Simon (pictured next to me), is also the leader of the Youth Ministry, with a mere 6 million members (aged 18-35) and he is eager to get the message of entrepreneurship out to them.  The opportunity to teach work as worship is immense and we thank God for it!

DML Ethiopia Team (zonal leaders/trainers)